PARIS - The Délégation Générale pour l'Armement (DGA) July 1 qualified the Rafale combat aircraft from Dassault Aviation to the full F3 multimission standard, the procurement office said.
"The first deliveries of aircraft produced to the F3 standard will start at the beginning of 2009," the DGA said in a July 7 statement. "The aircraft already in service will be brought up to the new standard."
The F3 standard allows the Rafale to use the anti-ship missile AM39, the Reco NG reconnaissance pod and deliver the ASMP-A nuclear missile. The F2 model flies air-defense and ground-attack missions.
Negotiations are expected to begin in 2009 for the next batch of some 60 Rafales.
So far, 58 Rafales have been delivered out of 120 ordered. Of those delivered, 35 were for the Air Force, 23 for the Navy. A planned total of 294 aircraft are due to be ordered and will be the sole aircraft flown by the Air Force and Navy air arm.
The Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program is ready to test a few components that soldiers may have in their hands by 2010.
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